Two out of five leaseholders say their service charges have jumped unexpectedly, a new study has revealed.

The findings have been published in a new report that surveyed 2,000 leaseholders.

It found that service charges were the cost most frequently identified by leaseholders as having increased unexpectedly, ahead of ground rents.

Ground rents for most existing long leases will be capped at £250 a year under proposed legislation.

Investors coalition

The report was commissioned by controversial group Justice for Property Rights – a coalition of investors, retirees and freeholders.

It is calling on the Government not to penalise its property interests, and claims that leasehold reform – including ground rents being reduce to peppercorn levels – could result in losses exceeding £30billion.

The group insists that it supports action to tackle genuinely unfair lease terms and backs efforts to make commonhold a workable alternative.

However, it warns that current proposals risk going further by “retrospectively reducing or extinguishing rights” attached to existing ground rent arrangements, without a clear commitment to fair compensation.

Leaseholders are telling us that the issues affecting them are service charges, transparency, accountability.”

Richard Merrin, spokesperson for Justice for Property Rights, said: “Leaseholders are telling us that the issues affecting them every month are service charges, transparency, accountability and confidence in the management of their buildings.

“This is not an argument against reform. It is an argument for ensuring that reform reflects the evidence and addresses the issues leaseholders themselves identify as having the greatest impact on their everyday lives.”

Service charges

It follows Hamptons claiming earlier this year that flat service charges top £200 a month for the first time.

In March, it revealed that the average service charge paid by flat leaseholders last year was £2,405, up 4.6% on 2024.

More than a third of flats – at 37% – had a service charge exceeding 1% of their value in 2025, up from 28% a decade ago.  Some mortgage lenders are unwilling to lend above this figure, according to Hamptons.

Flats with a service charge at or below 1% of their value were 50% more likely to sell last year than those with charges of 2% or more, it said.